Tripartite Commission discusses amendments to Labour Code

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Over April-May 2002, Poland's Tripartite Commission has been discussing the government's proposals for amendments to the Labour Code, which seek to reduce labour costs and make labour law more flexible. The debate has seen a number of differences of opinion between the two largest trade unions organisations, NSZZ 'Solidarność' and OPZZ.

Over April-May 2002, considerable public attention was focused on the government's proposed amendments to the Labour Code, which are mainly aimed at combating current high levels of unemployment. The fundamental aim is to create conditions fostering the lowering of labour costs and to make labour law more flexible, enabling employers to dismiss and employ workers more freely. For example, the proposed changes would deprive employees dismissed in small firms (with up to 20 workers) of their severance pay guaranteed by law. According to the government, the reduction of employers’ costs should provide employment for new workers and create new jobs.

Negotiations over the changes to the Labour Code have been conducted in the Tripartite Commission (Komisja Trójstronna) The current re-establishment of the Tripartite Commission is seen as a key factor which may be conducive to the development of Polish industrial relations. The Commission, which includes the main national employers’ and employees’ organisations and the government, was established in 1993, but it virtually ceased to function over the period 1996-2001. This was mainly due to certain differences of interest and opinion between the two major trade union organisations: the 'post-communist' All-Poland Alliance of Trade Unions (Ogólnopolskie Porozumienie Związków Zawodowych, OPZZ) and the Independent and Self-Governing Trade Union (Niezależny Samorządny Związek Zawodowy Solidarność, NSZZ 'Solidarność'). However, during this period lower-level tripartite commissions (within some sectors of the economy) did function, dealing with reductions in employment levels (through collective dismissals). For instance, owing to a successful agreement between the relevant trade unions, employers’ organisations and government bodies, employment in metalworking has been reduced from nearly 140,000 to 40,000.

The new left-wing government which came to power following the parliamentary elections in 2001 opted for a revival of the social dialogue and introduced a number of amendments to the Act on the Tripartite Commission. The Act specifies the minimum number of members required in order for a trade union or employers’ organisation to be deemed representative, and thus eligible for participation in the Commission. Moreover, the Act lays down the procedures for tripartite dialogue at various levels. The re-establishment of the Tripartite Commission resulted for the most part from a change in policy by trade unions. Over 1989-2000, NSZZ 'Solidarność' and OPZZ were directly engaged in politics, which weakened their interest in the work and functioning of the Tripartite Commission. However, in 2000, both major trade unions admitted that their participation in politics had proved rather unsuccessful. The parliament elected in 2001 now contains no representatives of trade union leaderships, which has rekindled the unions’ interest in participation in the Tripartite Commission.

Currently, the Tripartite Commission includes two trade union organisations (NSZZ 'Solidarność' and OPZZ), three employers’ organisations - the Polish Confederation of Private Employers (Polska Konfederacja Pracodawców Prywatnych, PKPP), representing the owners of small and medium-sized enterprises, the Polish Confederation of Employers (Konfederacja Pracodawców Polskich, KPP), representing the management boards of large-scale, often state-owned, enterprises, and the Polish Craft Association (Związek Rzemiosła Polskiego), a long-standing organisation representing the owners of small firms - and representatives of the government, with the minister of labour in the lead. Two further social partner organisations are seeking to participate in the Tripartite Commission - the Forum on Trade Unions (Forum Związków Zawodowych) and the Business Centre Club. These two organisations are already representative, in that they have assembled the minimum number of members making them eligible for participation in the Commission.

In the course of the debate over the Labour Code amendments, an agreement has been reached between the leaderships of NSZZ 'Solidarność' and OPZZ. In April 2002, the chairs of these two organisations, Marian Krzaklewski and Maciej Manicki, appeared together on a television programme and stated a common position. They reject that part of the government project which reduces the role and function of trade unions in collective agreements (it allows for collective agreements to be dissolved against the wishes of trade unions). At the same time, both leaders have given their assent to measures reducing the administrative costs of running a business.

However, although the positions of the two union organisations have become more congruent, certain differences remain, for example with regard to the level of their criticism towards the government's plans. NSZZ 'Solidarność', though rejecting the proposals for amending the Labour Code submitted by the cabinet, has declared its intention of resuming negotiations with the government, whereas OPZZ has expressed its continuing support for the government proposals. The chair of OPZZ and the chairs of two employers' organisations, PKPP and the Polish Craft Association, have drawn up a common position. This sets out their reservations over the government's proposed amendments on issues such as the dissolution of collective agreements, leave, severance pay and overtime pay.

NSZZ 'Solidarność' expressed its opposition to the government's proposals by organising a demonstration in Warsaw on 26 April 2002, which assembled - according to different sources and estimates - between several thousands and several tens of thousands of people. The lack of agreement between the two largest Polish trade unions is likely to hinder the process of liberalisation of the labour market, which is strongly insisted upon by the employers’ organisations.

The Ministry of Labour and Social Policy (Minsterstwo Pracy i Polityki Społecznej, MPiPS) has introduced into its proposal a number of changes consistent with the trade unions' proposals. The Ministry now intends to submit the proposals to parliament, even without the assent of one of the members of the Tripartite Commission, NSZZ 'Solidarność'. This may, according to observers, lead in future to a crisis in the social dialogue and a renewed marginalisation of the Tripartite Commission.

The government's proposals have also met with criticism on the part of a group of independent experts. On 14 May 2002, the Polish Senate and the German-based Friedrich Ebert Foundation (Friedrich Ebert Stiftung) co-organised a conference, at which participants stated that greater flexibility of labour relations without concurrent comprehensive alterations in economic policy would not necessarily result in a drop in the unemployment rate but, quite to the contrary, could lead to a temporary rise in unemployment.